UngeheuerLich
Legend
You notice a good compromise, if everyone is equally unhappy.Background and Theme providing equipment... that's a cool way of doing starting gear, so long as we still have the option to customize gear.
Not sure I like the idea of racial weapon boosts. I've got a feeling that will backfire into locking characters into certain weapons, even with it generally being a small advantage. I'd rather they got automatic proficiency but no boost like a bonus to hit and especially damage.
DM: "Why is your dwarf cleric holding an axe? Aren't clerics of Moradin more well known for wielding hammers - the tool of a smith?"
Player: "Because I don't get a damage bump with a hammer - or a mace."
Also, don't like the spell formatting. As far back as I can remember, there's always been some sort of stat block for a spell's basic information - school, range, area, components, etc.
The other things mentioned haven't even raised an eyebrow as I read through the docs, so I'm neutral on them.
But...
Good God, the whiners in the comments. Which one of the designers kicked their dog?
I myself am somewhat hesitant about what I've seen and read, but I'm rather shocked that the 4E'ers feel so excluded. The playtest strikes me as a 4E skeleton with OD&D language at the moment. As a bit of a grognard (I missed OD&D, but have played all other versions), so far I'm not feeling like D&DNext is speaking to me entirely.
I wonder if, as a compromise edition (as in committee-made), 5E will end up pleasing no one.
I like all editions since 2nd edition (i don´t know the rest). So I am quite happy. I personally believe their admixture could result in a fun game. But please, don´t listen to the whiners. They most probably didn´t even try it out.
Compare it to playtest reports here on enworld. Some of them are really great.